


we take care of each other

by kimibot (polaroidkid)



Category: Vampire: The Masquerade, World of Darkness (Games)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Gay, gay vampires - Freeform, who somehow end up as friends
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-02
Updated: 2017-11-02
Packaged: 2019-01-28 14:59:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,830
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12609220
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/polaroidkid/pseuds/kimibot
Summary: [100 words challenge] 3 german kindred try to survive - or, how i met these people and how they continued to disappoint me





	we take care of each other

Germany, Leipzig – 2007

 

She's walking down one of the darker, dirtier streets in one of the more dubios city districs of Leipzig. Her jeans are full of holes, and her sweater is pretty torn. In her scratched hands, she's holding a creasy 5€ bill, the first she'd seen in a while. There's still some brown coins collected in her pockets, but she won't get far with those.  
Asta's destination is the next grocery store, in an attempt not to starve today.

 

Said grocery store is one of those that aren't any big and aren't any clean, so the uninterested cashier doesn't seem to mind that Asta's last wash had been a while ago. She's probablyjust used to it, or filled with pretty, but really Asta doesn't give a shit. She was never a beauty, so taking a shower is almost unneccessary (almost). It is almost closing time, so there's no one else in the store.

 

For her, it's about food. Survival. The last weeks – months? - Asta had been busy scrapping money and her will to live off the ground. And comparing prices. Always buying the cheapest, sometimes just taking and running. This time, she'll pay. Stealing actually isn't her thing. Her thing is hacking. Well, was.  
Till she lost her home.  
And her Wi-Fi connection (in reality Asta felt pretty dumb realizing it was the thing she missed most), with which she lost all connection to her best (and only) buddy Wolfgang.Wolfgang had been her mentor. He has taught her everything that she knew, and admittedly, that isn't much. Of course he would have been able to teach, tell and show her much more if none of this shit had happened to her.

 

Asta creeps down the aisles to snatch up some bread, and maybe a chocolate bar. Her stomach growls loudly, as she spots the different types of food and she bites on her lips. A clerk is somewhere near her, but she doesn't pay attention to him, as she scans through the price tags for the cheapest product. Even a few cent matter, so she had learned.  
  
Before she can make a decision, someone is speaking to her. „Hey.“  
She turns around, frowns and recognizes the clerk, who had been a few aisles away from her just a second ago. No idea what he could want from her. Also no idea why he didn't ask the usual „Can I help you?“ question. „What do you want? Any problems?“, she asks to break the silence and brushes her greasy hair behind her ears. She spots his name tag. Wolfgang. Damn,what a coincidence. She had never seen 'her' Wolfgang. He hadn't been the type to take selfies and didn't have a webcam.That, or it was always broken. Thinking about it, that's pretty strange, but since he offered so much and never asked for a picture of her, she never questioned it. Never had to.  
„Eyes open. Look here“, says the Wolfgang in front of her who has a strangely plastical face, turns around, and leaves. Shit. That's what _her_ Wolfgang always said, too. Too big a coincidence.  
Doesn't matter. Doesn't matter. Asta starts sweating. She wants to follow him, but she needs the bread. She can't go back later. Later, the shop will be closed. Shit.

 

So she takes one, any, and walks to the cash register, quickly. She sees Wolfgang leaving the store. The process is taking way to long for her and she shifts her weight from one leg to the other. The cashier raises an eyebrow, but Asta doesn't care. When it's finally done, she sprints back onto the street, looking left, looking right,  but Wolfgang's nowhere to be seen. She clenches her first. Shit. A chance, wasted.  
She presses her bread to her chest, moans, and heads back to her humble abode.  _Could really bite my own ass once more. Fuck_ .   
  


One alleyway away from her shelter, suddenly a man appears in front of her. He appears _so_ suddenly, she almost runs into him. „Wolfgang!“, she calls out, suprised and shocked at the same time. „Shut up.“ „Uhm.“ „Wordy as ever.“ „... so it is you.“ „Actually, I'm this guy.“  
And his face changes, in a matter of seconds. It melts. Oh, shit, it _melts._  
And then there's scars. So many scars, warts, and other horrible things.  
She doesn't believe in god, but at this point, here, at this place, she really does wonder what it is he envisioned with this bullshit. Her knees become wobbly and her head feels light, but she can still stand.  
„Soon, you'll be as ugly as I am.“  
„Pleaseno.“  
He comes closer, so Asta kicks him in the balls as hard as she can, turns into the other direction and starts running. Anywhere where the people are. Incredible, how fast you can run, when you're scared.  
Unfortunately, for her, Asta isn't in top condition despite all of the adrenaline. She'd never been sporty, and that hasn't changed since she stopped eating regularely.  
Wolfgang catches up, way too early, because she's out of breath way too early. Of course he does.  
She screams and kicks around and claws into his face, and her fingers get a little wet. Blood. Good. Hurt him.  
Bad: he isn't weak, and he can hurt her, and so he does. He throws her to the ground, somehow he does that, and his moldy foot keeps her in place. She pushes her fingers into his eyes, or so he tries, and he pushes his teeth into her neck, and that he succeeds at.

 

Next thing she remembers is all the pain on earth. She screams, like she never had before. As she wakes up, she is changed. Nosferatu, her kind are called, and doesn't walk among the living anymore. Now that's something she could get used to.

 

France, Nice – 1939

 

Louise knows that she is being watched. She doesn't know for sure how long, but she pays the first thought in the morning to her shoes which she definitely placed next to her door and not in front of her bed.The second thought goes to the curtains which she definitely closed, and that are now flowing with the cool autumn wind that comes in through the window that was originally closed as well.

At first she thought she was just being watched and her now absent family took her mind with them.  
Then she saw him for the first time.  
  
After an exhausting day she had went to bed early (they talk about war, and Louise is in debt, still somehow she always manages to get through, she has to, to survive). Once again it's the nightmares that jolt her awake, away from sleep. Her nightmares are about the things she doesn't speak about, the things she forbid herself from thinking about. _No one will believe you, kitten_ , echoes in her head, again and again.   
After making it through the first wave of shock that is always the worst, she wraps her arms around her chest and sits in her bed as stiff as a candle. Here's hoping she didn't scream again. Her neighbours already complained once, and if she loses this small lodging too, the future won't look very rosy for her. Whatever she says, they think she is scandalous. She is aware they are whispering about her. That she'd never be seen with men, but hear.   
It used to be different. The family Cyr used to be respected and had money and influence.

 

That was before mother died and father began suffering because of it. Now, only Louise is left, as her siblings went to the land of the free, to America, a few years ago.  
Sometimes she wishes back into the past, into the golden before. Then she reminds herself that all of that has passed and she has bills to pay in the here and now.  
  
Staying in bed would not make any sense now. Since she can't go back to sleep again anyway, she decides to look for some distraction in her little living room. The candle on her night table isn't lit, she blew it out before she went o bed, or maybe she didn't light it at all. She can't remember.  
Even though she doesn't want to admit it, she's a little bit afraid of the dark, but the moon is shining brightly through her window. Her, once again, open window, important to mention. Louise frowns and goes to close it. The cool autumn breeze swishes around her legs.  
  
Before she can turn around to go further on her way, an ice cold hand covers her mouth and stops her from screaming out loud. Instinctively, she tenses up and tries to kick the person holding her. In the very next moment, the strange man ( _It can only be a man, only men are capable of things like this_ , she thinks and will later feel very childish) has thrown her to the ground and pins her down with his legs, so her squirmish movements do no good at all. She forces herself to stay calm, even though every single of his touch causes her skin to burn and leaves more room for the rising fear. _He wants you to fight back, remember? He loves it._  
„Keep. Quiet“, the stranger murmurs and takes hand off her face. His is only inches away from hers and he is grinning, showing ugly teeth. Something about them isn't right. His jaw is too big. His teeth are too sharp.  
„I am absolutely quiet, and now, please do get off me.“  
„Forgive me, dearest Louise.“ He rolls off her and gets on his knees next to her. She crawls backwards, still on the floor, until her back hits the wall. _I should scream._ But she can't. His eyes are fixed on hers, and she can't move her lips or tongue to make a single sound.  
„I know you...deeply, Louise... I have examined you for a long, long time... my name is Alois....“  
Louise takes a deep breath. _Please, not again. Not – not in my own place._ She begins to shiver and holds back tears. She stares at him with a grim expression. _Display no weakness_.  
  


„There is just so much you do not know, child. You are afraid, just the way you should be. But I will take away your fear of the dark. She is part of me, as she will be a part of you... I do not wish to lie to you. With this, I will hurt you _a lot_ , doll.“ He grins, and comes even closer.  
„You think I'll fight through it?“, she spits back angrily and is suprised herself.  
„How hard you can bite.“ And with that, he forces his fangs into her neck.  
  
Louise screams, now, until all energy fades from her body.  
She is aware, that she is dying. Fire floods through her body, she is burning, on fire, and then she is void of live.

 

She is floating, and she is outside her body. Around here is the sun, and the moon, and the stars, and then she _is not_ anymore, no poor little girl anymore, she is Caine and Lilith and Malkav, jester god – Malkav's _daughter_ , child – and she is god. Around her is everything, in her is everything, and nothing, and she breaks.  
Sie weiß, dass sie stirbt. Feuer fließt durch sie, sie brennt und dann ist sie leer von Leben.  
  
And then she is Louise Cyr. She is dead, and she is thirsty. For the first time walking on earth, she _is._ She turns her head, sees Alois who gave her his blood to save her from this ridicolous piece of human life, and she laughs and laughs and laughs.  
Alois grins, the bloody wound he let her drink from is already closing. Louise tastes her own blood as he presses his lips to hers.  
  
  
  
Germany, Leipzig – 1941

 

It is war and Christine is scared. Her nanny tells her, she doesn't need to be, but her brother is gone, and her father is too, and her mother pretends to be. They are all fighting, with themselves or others.  
They don't tell her much and their mansion is away from the city, so Christine doesn't know so much. She doesn't want to, anyway, she is only eight after all and prefers to play with the pretty dollhouse in her room. At night, she sometimes sees the planes but her Nanny forbid her from looking out of the window when the sirens start.  
  
She is in front of the mirror, looking at herself. Today is a special day, her mother had said. The family will hold a winter festival in the garden, and many people will come. Here mother too doesn't want it to be war, Christine knows, that's why she does things like this. So that the people are a little happy.  
Her ginger her is done into beautiful little braids that are decorated with little ribbns and her white collar fits perfectly. Christine thinks she's beautiful, like a real little lady. That's what her oldest brother used to call her sometimes, but he is in war now. She has to grin and immediately feels a sting in her heart because she misses him.  
Only the freckles, spread all over her face, bother her. When she was younger she used to scratch them when the nanny didn't look. Today she knows it's only childish.  
  
„The guests are waiting, Christine. Show yourself! You're part of the family, too!“, says her mother, poking her head through the bathroom door. These were the longest coherent sentences she had heard from her in a while. She is happy about that. „Yes, mother.“, she says calmly, because her mother doesn't like it when she's loud and excited. She walks outside her room and follows the long, wood-clothed hallways into the garden. It's cold, and she has to hold her coat closer to her body. The snow is falling in small, cotton-candy-soft flakes onto the grass and is covering it in a white carpet.  
  


It is not dark yet, but the sun is setting already. There are torches everywhere and buffets with edibles. Christine has never seen so many people in one place. Maybe there's someone her age with whom she can play! Someone always brings children to activities like these, she has learned.  
The garden looks magical. She keeps walking in between the people, it isn't as many as she had expected, and looks for a playmate. The adults all have their bad smelling drinks that she doesn't want to try. Not again, one time she took a sip all secretely and it tasted horrible. She really can't understand why the tall ones like things like these!  
  
The snow is a little thicker now, and Christine wonders, why the big torches don't go out. She watches the snowflakes dancing, shining and melting in the blaze. She would really love to lie down and make a snow angel right now... but there's those stupid adults everywhere and not a single child. Did no one think of her? She huffs and looks around. No ones paying her any mind. Hmm....

If she sneaks off, to play a little, nobody will notice or miss her, until she's back. It sounds like fun,so Christine makes her way to the lake in the garden.

  
At the lake, it is even colder, but she just throws herself into the snow with a little cry of happiness.l Ouch, the ground is harder than it looks like! Too bad, but she just moves her arms and legs in half a circle from front to back again and again, and looks at the sky, to see how the stars are twinkling if they show themselves.  
She's been there for a while, as suddenly, she hears a woman's voice.  
„Aren't you cold?“ The voice is warm and friendly. Christine looks up and sees a friendly, young woman with pretty brown curls.  
„Oh, I am“, she has to admit and gets up. Something about this woman makes her want to trust her. The woman sits down next to her. „That's too bad“, she says and smiles. „I'm Christine.“ „Oh, of course I know that. My name is Miss Adler.“ „Nice to meet you, Miss Adler!“  
It's quiet for a moment. Far away, they can hear the party, and above them smiles the moon. Christine wishes for her brother back. For her, it's only the golden future, no worries.  
  
„Can I show you something nice, Christine?“  
„What is it?“  
Miss Adler turns her head and comes closer to Christine's face and neck. She feels no breath.

„This won't hurt at all, dear...“

 

What Christine learned this evening was that people hurt and lie to you sometimes because they love you. What comes after is nice, and a mother will do what's right for her childe. And as a Ventrue, you have to be able to lead them.

 


End file.
